Vladimir Putin replaces his bodyguard According to State Council Secretary Alexei Dyumin, the Kremlin

Putin appointed Dyumin as his defense industry-focused assistant when he was re-elected to a six-year term earlier this year, and the Kremlin said at the time that Dyumin would be taking on additional tasks.

Alexei Dyumin, a former bodyguard and adviser to President Vladimir Putin, was named secretary of the State Council, which is an advisory body to the Russian head of state, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.

Putin appointed Dyumin as his defense industry-focused assistant when he was re-elected to a six-year term earlier this year, and the Kremlin said at the time that Dyumin would be taking on additional tasks.

On the Kremlin website on Wednesday morning was a decree that Putin had signed designating him to the position of State Council member.

Earlier this month, longtime Kremlin advisor Sergei Markov said that a lot of people thought Putin considered Dyumin to be his successor.

Putin, 71, is starting a new six-year term and is anticipated to remain in power for some time to come. No trustworthy information is available on who Putin would choose to replace him in the future.

However, the political elite of Moscow has long speculated about names, including Dyumin's.

Earlier this month, Dyumin, 51, was appointed to the Kremlin after holding the position of regional governor for the Tula area of Russia.

After joining Russia's Federal Guards Service (FSO) in 1995, which looks out for the elite of the Kremlin, Dyumin served as Putin's bodyguard during both of his years in office. Additionally, he served as the GRU's deputy chief of staff (Russian military intelligence).